While I have no intention of engaging in the political debate surrounding gun control and the 2nd Amendment, the recently decided case out of NJ (summarized below) illustrates the intersection of domestic violence and individual rights.
It has been long held that if an individual is found to have committed domestic violence, one of the penalties can be the forfeiture of that person’s NJ firearm’s purchaser identification card and any firearms owned EVEN if the underlying act of domestic violence does not involve a gun. This is done by a separate judicial proceeding.
As detailed below, the defendant in this particular case was acquitted of the charge of domestic violence. However, given what appears to be an ongoing history of domestic violence, his purchasers permit was still revoked. Keep in mind, this prevents the purchase of firearms and the forfeiture of any and all firearms owned. This can include guns for hunting, collections, and family heirlooms.
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW | FAMILY LAW 10-2-6533 In Re Appeal of the Denial of the Application for Z.L., App. Div. (Kennedy, J.A.D.) (12 pp.) We clarify that an application for a firearms purchaser identification card and handgun permits may be denied in circumstances where the applicant had been accused of assaulting his wife, but acquitted at trial, and where the police responded to his home on several occasions thereafter to address domestic dispute complaints brought by his wife. The application was properly denied pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:58-3(c)(5).
